If there are trends you wouldn't expect, terrazzo flooring is certainly one of them. Its history goes back to Greek and Roman times but it became popular in Venice in the 1400s. Here, mosaic flooring was widely used and it was made with different kinds of stones - waste from other works - kept together with pebbles lime mixed with tiles and then concrete. Used with normal tiles for liberty style decorations, Venetian flooring was later a cheap and popular option. As a matter of fact, the majority of us Italians tends to associate it with our grandparents' kitchens, where we could slide with our slippers and where stains blended in with the colours of marble. This material was no longer used for the next two generations, maybe due to its chromatic disorder out of fashion or due to its allure amarcord. This is why it's hard to believe terrazzo flooring is trendy again. Especially considering that it's only used for floors but also as a texture for furniture and home accessories. Here is a little review!
Let's start from Five Elephant, a bar for coffee lovers that recently opened in the Mitte district in Berlin. Differently from the two other branches, this one wanted to appeal to the trendy and touristy Mitte district and it opted for a retro dairy style. The counter, designed by Nick Warner from Sunst Studio, is what stands out the most. The main counter has a 130-years-old Venetian terrazzo surface, found under a concrete layer in the middle of a refurbishment site. Apart from a wide variety of coffee, the cafe is well known for its cheesecakes, allowing its clients to step in the past.
Terrazzo flooring was also used in a summer house in the Greek island of Cephalonia. Architecture Research Athens was lucky as not too far away from the house there is an abandoned marble quarry: a cheap and functional source. Smooth and fresh, marble is the best option to defeat the Mediterranean heat. Its colourful grain is a natural decoration and became the distinctive feature of the house, leaving the walls quite free.
Max Lamb really surprises us. Together with the Dzek team, he created Marmoreal, a new material made of 95% marble and 5% polyester resin (see first picture). A prefabricated terrazzo made with a base of Verona white, Mori yellow and Alpi green. Lamb created his ideal stone and enriched his Quarry collection. This carefully selected colourful mix is produced in standard blocks and then used to manufacture furniture. There are a bathroom accessories and a living room furniture collections including unique tables, chairs, bookcases and wall-lights.
Alberto Bellamoli too decided to play with terrazzo in one of his indoor furniture collections. Born in the outskirts of Verona and grown up in Denmark, he defines this an anthropological project, more than a design one. Alberto was able to fully understand the potential of this material by working with Italian artisans, as the production process still requires manual work. What attracts him is also the fact that the final result is beyond his control, leaving things to chance. His Collecta collection includes tables, bowls, candle holders with smooth shapes and bright contrasts. It was so successful he is going to present a new collection in September. Stay tuned…
Paola Navone rediscovers terrazzo for Baxter. Presented at the 2017 Salone, Matera is the outdoor table in different sizes. Strong material component for an elegant and strong black-and-white.
Normann Copenhagen used this material and its colours in an even more open minded way for his stationery collection Daily Fiction. The idea behind the 200-pieces line is that of a candy shop for adults. The Danish firm invites us to free ourselves from the digital era and to embrace pen and paper. Playing with the materials, we also play with the fiction of the story of life, which we tell on a diary that looks like a piece of marble. Note pads, agendas, notebooks, pencils, pens and rubbers…a mix that suits everyone. Presented at the Design Republic in Milan, it’s different from Nordic design and its neutral nuances and instead it sprinkles with cheerfulness.
